Leeds "Large Public Trench Air Raid Shelters"

[mike-p]

There was an air-raid shelter near Steads factory in Sheepscar on Scott Hall Road, next to the path down to the beck -we used to 'play' in it in the sixties. The area is now waste land and fenced off - I keep meaning to go and see if it is still there

[big s]

air raid shelter on clarendon road.sorry about the size of one of the photos but no matter what i tried i could not get it to go smaller.this shelter was hard to see until the gardens dept., went into action.the entrance behind the blast wall is bricked up.

[simon2710]

There is a really huge one (public air raid shelter) under Chapel Allerton Park in North Leeds. It was either in the Leeds Weekly or YEP because they renovated the playground and found the entrance.There's also a really old wooden green sign nearby, I wander if that has anything to do with it?I remember though, in this particular article, there were peoples accounts of the air raid shelter.Fascinating stuff!

[chameleon]

simon2710 wrote: There is a really huge one (public air raid shelter) under Chapel Allerton Park in North Leeds. It was either in the Leeds Weekly or YEP because they renovated the playground and found the entrance.There's also a really old wooden green sign nearby, I wander if that has anything to do with it?I remember though, in this particular article, there were peoples accounts of the air raid shelter.Fascinating stuff! As I remember there's an image from Google Earth back in the depths of the threads which shows ths shelter quite clearly.

[simon2710]

hmmmmm.....Wonder if I could try and dig it out?I'll do a forum search and see what I can find, or I could just have a look on the 'Earth mesen.

[chameleon]

simon2710 wrote: hmmmmm.....Wonder if I could try and dig it out?I'll do a forum search and see what I can find, or I could just have a look on the 'Earth mesen. There's been something more recently too - following from one of Phill's offerings on Deep Trench Shelters if that helps. Search on here is a nightmare

[chameleon]

Shelter related, borrowed from the YEP 'Leeds at War' feature:Published Date: 04 September 2009 On September 4 1939 Leeds woke to a Monday morning, the very first of World War Two, and swung into action to make sure the city was on a war footing.The first air raid warning siren, triggered by the sighting of unidentified aircraft, had blasted out during the small hours at 2.30 am and the all-clear was sounded at 4.12 am.It was reported that the people of Leeds had kept their heads, and some had not even woken. But in Moortown and Alwoodley many had left their homes and walked to nearby fields: "I was amazed by the calm. Among the best were mothers who had young children with them" said one air raid warden. Others camped out in shelters they had begun to dig only a few hours before.There were some complaints about public shelters – about people blocking the entrance into the shelters by sitting too close to the doors, and about smoking.One man was quoted as saying there should be a no smoking policy in the shelters as the air became stale owing to the lighting of pipes and cigarettes in a confined space.The building of air raid shelters was the priority now that war had been declared and they were being dug out, converted and equipped all over Leeds.The plan was to create 70-80 shelters within a half-mile radius of the centre of Leeds.Many of them were being set up in the basements of public buildings and, on that Monday, workmen were converting a basement into a shelter under Leeds Grand theatre, lit by oil lamps when our reporter visited, and under the Adult Deaf and Dumb Institute at the top of Albion Street.A subway under York Road was being turned into a massive air raid shelter with three entrances. It would stretch from the New York Road – Vicar Lane junction to the York Road Circus.Other shelters were being created on Cookridge Street, Basinghall Street, Meadow Road, and Armley Town Street.But for some the idea of war was too much, and one family of four was found gassed in the bathroom of their home in Bradford. The father of the family had expressed fears about the war, said neighbours.Gasmasks were a major topic of conversation. There were reports that the Germans were dropping deadly mustard gas on Polish civilians in Warsaw and, in Leeds, people were coming to terms with the idea of always having their gasmask with them.The Yorkshire Evening Post sent a photographer onto the streets to photograph just how the city's residents were wearing their masks, which were carried in boxes with a long strap, like a shoulder bag.The first couple to marry in Leeds in wartime, Mr Harry Carlton and Miss Doris Sockel, were pictured outside Leeds Register Office which was then on Park Square. The bride wore a happy smile as she clutched her gasmask.The chief constable was reporting that there was room for improvement in the observance of lighting restrictions, and reminding people not to put visible lights on after the all-clear was given following an air raid warning.But the blackout was also proving dangerous to those moving about the city. Two men died during the blackout on the first night of war, one killed by a motorbike in Eastgate, Leeds, the other by a car on Hunslet Road, Leeds.A couple on a tandem ended up in Leeds General Infirmary after colliding with a telegraph pole in Garforth. Both suffered concussion.Food control committees were being set up to begin the business of rationing food, everyone was being told to check their gas stop tap to make sure it could be turned off in the event of an air raid warning – and football players were out of work as a ban on matches being played in front of spectators came into force for fear of panic if an air raid warning sounded.All agreements between clubs and their players were cancelled – and Leeds United players were either signing up or out looking for other jobs.It was also being realised that fewer children had been evacuated than the 40,000 intended during the evacuation earlier in the week, but reports were coming back on the well-being of the children.One Leeds evacuee, Eric Paley, had his letter to his mum published in the YEP. It read: "Mamy, I am saif here so don't crye."The international situation at the beginning of World War Two was very different to the situation at its end and countries that eventually joined the conflict initially declared themselves to be neutral.So on Sep 4 1939, President Roosevelt declared America to be a neutral nation.The people of Leeds listened, and prepared to fight on